Portal:Horror/Selected article archive/2007
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[edit] February 2007
The Cat and the Canary is a 1927 American silent horror film adaptation of John Willard's 1922 black comedy play of the same name. Directed by German expressionist filmmaker Paul Leni, the film stars Laura La Plante as Annabelle West, Forrest Stanley as Charles "Charlie" Wilder, and Creighton Hale as Paul Jones. The plot revolves around the death of Annabelle, Charlie, and Paul's insane uncle and the reading of his will 20 years later. Annabelle inherits her uncle's fortune, but when she and her family spend the night in his haunted mansion they are stalked by a mysterious figure. Meanwhile, a lunatic known as "the Cat" escapes from an asylum and hides in the mansion.
The Cat and the Canary is part of a genre of comedy horror films inspired by 1920s Broadway stage plays. Paul Leni's adaptation of Willard's play blended expressionism with humor, a style Leni was notable for and critics recognized as unique. Leni's style of directing made The Cat and the Canary influential in the "old dark house" genre of films popular from the 1930s through the 1950s. The film was one of Universal's early horror productions and is considered "the cornerstone of Universal's school of horror." It has been remade five times, with the most notable starring comedic actor Bob Hope. (continued...)
[edit] March 2007
Cannibal Holocaust (1980) is a controversial exploitation film directed by Ruggero Deodato and based on a screenplay written by Gianfranco Clerici and Giorgio Stegani. Filmed in the actual Amazon Rainforest, it focuses on a team of four documentarians who head deep into the jungle to make a documentary on the primitive native tribes that live there. After two months and no word from the team, a famous anthropologist is sent on a rescue mission in hopes of finding the team alive. The film stars Robert Kerman as the anthropologist Harold Monroe, Carl Gabriel Yorke as director Alan Yates, Francesca Ciardi as Alan's girlfriend Faye, Perry Pirkanen as the cameraman Jack Anders, and Luca Barbareschi as fellow cameraman Mark Tomaso.
Cannibal Holocaust is one of the best known exploitation films due to the controversy it caused during its release. After premiering in Italy, the film was seized by the local Magistrate and Deodato was arrested for obscenity. He was later accused of making a snuff film based on circulating rumors that the film's actors were slain for the camera. Though Deodato would be cleared of these charges, the film was banned in Italy, the UK, Australia, and several other countries for graphic gore, sexual violence, and for the genuine slayings of six animals featured in the film. While many nations have revoked the ban, it is still banned to this day in other countries around the world. Despite this notoriety, Cannibal Holocaust is seen by some critics as a social commentary on civilized society. (continued...)
[edit] April 2007
Gremlins 2: The New Batch is a 1990 American film, and a sequel to Gremlins (1984). It was directed by Joe Dante and written by Charles S. Haas, with creature designs by Rick Baker. It stars Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, John Glover, Robert Prosky, Haviland Morris, Dick Miller, Jackie Joseph, Robert Picardo, and Christopher Lee.
The story continues the adventures of the creature Gizmo, who spawns numerous small monsters when wet. In the first film, Gizmo's offspring had rampaged through a small fictional town. In Gremlins 2, Gizmo multiplies within a skyscraper in New York City. The new creatures thus pose a serious threat to the city should they be able to leave the building, and much of the story involves the human characters' efforts to prevent this disaster.
Like the first film, Gremlins 2 is a live action comedy-horror film. However, Dante put effort into taking the sequel in new anarchic directions. In general, the film is meant to be more cartoon-like than the darker original, and the violence is fairly slapstick. There are also a number of parodies of other films and stories, most notably Gremlins itself, as well as the Rambo films, The Wizard of Oz, Marathon Man and The Phantom of the Opera. As with the first film, critical response varied. However, some critics who thought the first film was too dark gave Gremlins 2 better reviews. Unlike its highly successful predecessor, Gremlins 2 had a mediocre performance at the box office. (continued...)
[edit] June 2007
"Manos" The Hands of Fate, abbreviated Manos, is a 1966 American horror film written, directed and produced by El Paso fertilizer salesman Harold P. Warren. Warren also starred in the film, alongside El Paso theater actors Tom Neyman and John Reynolds. The film is best known for having been featured in a 1993 episode of the television comedy series Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K), a show based on the premise of mocking B-movies, which gave the film cult status.
The plot of the film revolves primarily around a vacationing family taking a road trip to a hotel. After a long drive in the Texas desert, the family is trapped at a lodge maintained by a polygamous pagan cult and they attempt to escape as the cult's members decide what to do with them.
Produced as a result of a bet, Manos was an independent production by a crew that had little or no background or experience in filmmaking and with a very limited budget at their disposal. Upon its theatrical debut, the film was critically slammed, and remained in obscurity until its Mystery Science Theatre appearance. It has since gained infamy as one of the worst films ever made. (continued...)
[edit] September 2007
Buffy the Vampire Slayer is an Emmy and Golden Globe-nominated American cult television series that initially aired from March 10, 1997 until May 20, 2003. It was created by writer-director Joss Whedon under his production tag, Mutant Enemy. The series narrative follows Buffy Anne Summers (played by Sarah Michelle Gellar), the latest in a line of young women chosen by fate to battle against vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness. Like previous slayers, Buffy is aided by a Watcher, who guides and trains her. Unlike her predecessors, Buffy surrounds herself with a circle of loyal friends who become known as the "Scooby Gang."
The series usually reached between four and six million viewers on original airings. Although such ratings are lower than successful shows on the "big four" networks (ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox), they were a success for the relatively new and smaller The WB Television Network. Reviews for the show were overwhelmingly positive, and it was ranked #41 on the list of TV Guide's 50 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. The WB network ceased operation on September 17, 2006 after airing an "homage" to their "most memorable series", including the pilot episodes of Buffy and its spin-off, Angel.
Buffy's success has led to hundreds of tie-in products, including novels, comics, and video games. The series has received attention in fandom, parody, and academia, and has influenced the direction of other television series.(continued...)
[edit] October 2007
Jason Voorhees is a fictional character from the Friday the 13th series of slasher films. He first appeared in Friday the 13th (1980) as Mrs. Voorhees' child, portrayed by Ari Lehman. Created in combination by Victor Miller, Ron Kurz, Sean S. Cunningham and Tom Savini, he was never intended to carry the series as the main villain. Jason Voorhees has also been represented in numerous novels, comic books, and a cross-over film with another horror legend, Freddy Krueger.
The character has primarily been an antagonist in the films, whether by stalking and killing the characters, or acting as a psychological threat to the lead character, as is the case in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning. Since Lehman's portrayal, the character has been represented by numerous actors and stuntmen, sometimes by more than one at a time; this has caused some controversy as to who should receive credit for the portrayal. Kane Hodder is the most well known of the stuntmen to portray Jason Voorhees, having played the character in four consecutive films.
The character's physical appearance has gone through many transformations, with various special makeup effects artists making their mark on the character's design, including Academy Award winning makeup artist Stan Winston. Tom Savini's initial design has been the basis for many of the later incarnations. The trademark hockey mask did not appear until Friday the 13th Part 3. Since Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, filmmakers have given Jason superhuman strength, and near invulnerability. He has been seen as a sympathetic character, albeit one whose motivation for killing has been cited as driven by the immoral actions of his victims.
Jason Voorhees has been featured in many humor magazines, referenced in feature films, parodied in television shows, and been the inspiration for a horror punk band. Several toy lines have been released based on various versions of the character from the Friday the 13th films. Jason Voorhees was awarded the MTV Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992, and his hockey mask is one of the most recognizable images in popular culture. (continued...)
[edit] November 2007
The Pit and the Pendulum (also known as Pit and the Pendulum) is a 1961 horror film directed by Roger Corman, starring Vincent Price, Barbara Steele, John Kerr, and Luana Anders. The screenplay by Richard Matheson was very loosely based on Edgar Allan Poe’s short story of the same name. Set in 16th Century Spain, the story is about a young Englishman who visits a forbidding castle to investigate his sister's mysterious death. After a series of horrific revelations, apparently ghostly appearances and violent deaths, the young man becomes strapped to the titular torture device by his lunatic brother-in-law during the film's climactic sequence.
The Pit and the Pendulum was the second title in the popular series of Poe-based movies released by American International Pictures, the first having been Corman’s House of Usher released the previous year. Like House, the film features widescreen cinematography by Floyd Crosby, huge sets designed by art director Daniel Haller, and a film score composed by Les Baxter. A critical and box office hit, Pit's commercial success convinced AIP and Corman to continue adapting Poe stories for another six films, five of them starring Price. The series ended in 1965 with the release of The Tomb of Ligeia.
Film critic Tim Lucas and writer Ernesto Gastaldi have both noted the film’s strong influence on numerous subsequent Italian thrillers, from Mario Bava’s The Whip and the Body (1963) to Dario Argento’s Deep Red (1975). Stephen King has described one of Pit’s major shock sequences as being among the most important moments in the post-1960 horror film. (continued...)
[edit] December 2007
Silent Hill 4: The Room is the fourth installment in the Konami Silent Hill survival horror series. The game was released in Japan in June 2004 and in North America and Europe in September of that same year. Silent Hill 4 was released for the Sony Playstation 2 and the Microsoft Xbox consoles as well as the PC. A soundtrack release was also made at the same time.
Unlike the previous installments, which were set primarily in the haunted town of Silent Hill, this game is set in the fictional town of South Ashfield, and is focused on the character of Henry Townshend attempting to escape from his locked-down apartment. He explores a series of supernatural worlds and finds himself in conflict with the undead serial killer Walter Sullivan.
Originally intended as a spinoff from the main series, Silent Hill 4 features an altered gameplay style with plot elements taken from previous installments. Upon its release the game was mostly praised with a mixed reaction to the deviations from the original Silent Hill style (more...)
